The current conversation in our culture when it comes to the issue of taxes...

This week we are addressing the issue of taxes. Specifically, I would like for us to ask and answer the questions “Does the government have the right to collect taxes? And if so, then what type of tax system would Jesus promote?

Yesterday, we addressed the question “Does the government have the right to collect taxes?” What is so fascinating about this question is that this question is not a new question. As a matter of fact this question was actually asked of Jesus. We see this question asked of Jesus in an event from history that is recorded for us in a section of an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the book of Matthew. In Matthew 22:15-22, we discovered that, as followers of Jesus, we are responsible for fulfilling our responsibilities that belong to the sphere of government, which includes paying taxes.

As followers of Jesus, there is no Biblical basis for refusing to pay taxes. As a matter of fact, Jesus paid taxes. The disciples of Jesus paid taxes. And early followers of Jesus paid taxes. We see this reality reinforced by the Apostle Paul in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Romans. In Romans 13:1-7, we saw Paul explain to early followers of Jesus that we are to pay our taxes to whom it is due; local, state, and federal.

So throughout the message and teachings of the letters that make up the Bible, we see that the government has the right to collect taxes and that followers of Jesus are to fulfill their responsibilities to pay taxes. Now, that leads us to the next question which we need to ask and answer, which is “What type of tax system would Jesus promote?”

Currently, the United States government uses what is referred to as a progressive tax system. Simply put, a progressive tax system advocates that as a person’s income increases, the percentage of taxes that a person pays increases. As we talked about last week, in our current political climate, the conversation surrounding the issue of taxes has been one of the most fascinating discussions to observe.

At one end of the conversation when it comes to the issue of taxes are politicians and others who advocate for an increase in taxes through an increase in the progressive nature of the current progressive tax system. As a general rule, those who are viewed in our culture as being on “the left” often paint the current economic environment as being "rigged" for the wealthy.

And in the conversations that have been occurring over the last several years, those who advocate for an increase in the progressive nature of the current progressive tax system will use phrases like "everybody needs to pay their fair share" or "we need to solve the issue of income inequality" or "we need policies that promote a living wage" or "we need to rid the country of crony capitalism and deal with the one percent who are taking advantage of the system".

On the other end of the conversation when it comes to the issue of taxes would be politicians and others who advocate for a decrease in taxes. Some would argue for a decrease in the progressive nature of the current progressive tax system. Others would argue for either a flat tax, or a consumption tax, which is also referred to as a “fair tax”.

These are politicians, who would be viewed in our culture as being on “the right”, who advocate for lower taxes will use phrases like "we need a tax system that promotes personal liberty and responsibility" or "we need a tax system that promotes economic growth in a way that makes the pie bigger for everyone".

So, who is right when it comes to taxes? Are taxes rigged for the wealthy? Are the rich not paying their fair share? Are taxes hindering economic growth? And more importantly, which tax system lines up with the message and teachings of Jesus?

To help answer these questions, let’s look at some statistics and some Scripture. Let’s start with the statistics. According to the most current data on taxes, provided by the Federal Government, 45% of Americans pay nothing in federal taxes. By contrast, the richest 20% of Americans pay nearly 87% of all federal individual income tax in America. In addition, the  top 1% of Americans, who have an average income of more than $2.1 million a year, pay 43.6% of all the federal individual income tax in the U.S.; of the top 0.1% — just 115,000 households, whose average income is more than $9.4 million, pay more than 20% of the federal income tax in America.

Now a potential argument in support of the current progressive tax system and the statistics that I just shared with you is “Well Dave, just because the rich are paying more taxes, doesn’t mean that they are paying their fair share. Besides, rich people don’t morally deserve their income because almost everyone’s income results largely from factors beyond their control. Rich people have had privilege and access to resources and systems that poor people have not had access to. So it is only just to make rich people pay more taxes. Anyways, rich people can afford to pay more and still be happy with their lives. So if you let poor people pay less taxes they will have more money so they will be happier. And besides, the progressive tax system promotes efficiency as a progressive tax system increases revenue to the government for public goods and services”.

Now, I just want to make sure that you don’t think that I am not making up this argument. You can see this argument on almost any website that promotes the progressive tax system.

But do the arguments of justice, efficiency, and happiness that are used by those who promote the current progressive tax rate that we have in America hold water? Friday, we will discover the answer to that question...